This invention relates to a cart for storing equipment and drugs therein and more particularly but not by way of limitation to a crash cart for use in hospital emergency rooms, intensive care units and other areas wherein it is necessary to quickly remove equipment and drugs required during an emergency situation.
In hospital emergency rooms, intensive care units and other areas, core zero or cardiac arrest is quite common. When this occurs immediate care must be provided in minutes to prevent permanent brain cell damage. To speed the delivery of necessary drugs and equipment, mobile carts are used by designated teams of nurses and doctors.
Heretofore, common table top equipment tool boxes were used made of stainless steel with rubber tire caster wheels and having several drawers containing drugs and resuscitation equipment. Some of the more quickly needed equipment were hung on the side of the cart and a defibrillator monitoring unit was mounted on top of the equipment box.
Because of the number of personnel on an emergency team and the necessity for speed in the delivery of care, confusion quite often occurs when the first drugs to be administered were in one drawer while an equally important piece of equipment was in another drawer. Because of the structure of the equipment box access to more than one drawer at a time was impossible causing serious delays.
Further these carts were organized in as much as first used drugs were in a specific drawer, respirator equipment in another drawer etc. This means one drawer after another must be opened and closed repeatedly when assisting the nurse or physician.
In U.S. Pat. No. 1,015,664 to Booth, U.S. Pat. No. 3,428,383 to Nobel, U.S. Pat. No. 3,828,695 to Skarky, U.S. Pat. No. 3,969,006 to Brown, U.S. Pat. No. 4,114, 965 to Oye et al. and U.S. Pat. No. 4,127,311 to Weiman various types of wheeled emergency carts and emergency cabinets are disclosed. None of these prior art carts specifically disclose the unique features and advantages of the subject invention as described herein.